New video! The Little Rain Garden that Could (Survive a Flood)

I’m so excited to share this new Lake Champlain Sea Grant video about a resilient rain garden along the Winooski River that survived catastrophic flooding in 2023, and kept on functioning, with a little help from committed community partners.

I first saw this rain garden in Montpelier about 3 weeks after the devastating floods. Drowning in sand and fine sediment, it had dune features burying some of the vegetation. Things looked dire. Rain gardens and other green stormwater infrastructure are meant to handle heavy rains and runoff, but not to be completely submerged, much less sediment deposition zones. It was clear that the function of the rain garden was compromised, but there was so much devastation in town – with homes, businesses, and state office buildings dealing with massive flood damages – it was hard to imagine it would be a priority for revitalization.

August 3, 2023

Two years later, the rain garden is back and more beautiful and functional than ever.

September 21, 2025

While the video was my idea, huge credit to LCSG’s Jill Sarazen and film maker Vince Franke of Peregrine Productions for making the video happen.

Jill inspects the rain garden, August 3, 2025. Out of sight in the background, flood debris had washed up against the teller machines in the bank drive through and along the walking trail. The Winooski River is just behind the trees.
In September 2025, the rain garden is thriving despite our extreme drought conditions. This story really underscores the resilience of well-designed green stormwater infrastructure.